We've met so many wonderful people here it would take fifty posts to describe them all. The Tost family is a good example. Their daughter, Ariadna, was introduced to us by Francesc Masdeu. She helped us find our present home and we are very happy to be here. Ariadna has just finished with her engineering studies in Barcelona and is headed for great things. Her boyfriend, Xavier, is also an engineer who works on international projects. They both speak good English.
Ariadna's parents, Rosa Maria and Josep, live around the corner from our first home on Carrer Major. They have a beautiful large house that has great views to the east of El Masroig. Josep and his son, Marc, farm over 28 hectares of wine grapes and olives. Marc completed his associates degree in agriculture last spring. Marc and Josep are excellent farmers. Their vineyards are well maintained and everything is ship shape. It's great to see farmers who obviously love what they do.
They farm in several different places and were kind enough to show me around a few of their fincas last week. Please look at the photos on the post below. They grow carinyena, garnatxa de pais, garnatxa blanca and a few other varieties. I was particularly impressed with the garnatxa de pais. As you know, there are multiple clones of most varieties of vinifera. Garnatxa de pais is distinctive by having loose clusters and smaller berries. I'm thinking about planting some.
The Tosts are able to irrigate one of their fincas with water from an abandoned mine. The mine was closed in 1912 when it filled up with water. The head of the mine is a four by four meter shaft which is 260 meters deep. There are galleries in the mine that extend for many kilometers. In fact, much of this area is tunneled with mine galleries. You can imagine how much water they hold. With the help of a mirror, Josep shined some light down the shaft and we could see the water level about twenty meters down. These old mines are what makes farming possible in our little corner of Montsant. Josep and Marc have a massive 60 hp electric pump attached to their well.
We spent a couple of hours driving around in their truck. They are proud that they've kept it running for 23 years and it's in remarkably good condition. It gave me encouragement to keep my 17 year old car on the road!
Ariadna, Marc and Josep showed me their family garden. Please take a look at the photo of the tomatoes below. It's customary around here to put up tomatoes for the winter. They pick them green and hang them on racks in a cool, well ventilated place. The tomatoes ripen slowly and will keep for months. In Catalunya, you must have tomato with your bread. It's the law!
Speaking of food (you knew I'd get around to this), the Tosts invited us to dinner during the Festa Major. Rosa Maria prepared, among other delicacies, a tuna dish that was absolutely delicious. It was fresh, cool and light (almost like a mousse) and the perfect end to a warmer than usual day. Marc served his old vine garnatxa blanca with it and you can't imagine a better pairing.
I hope you enjoy the photos and thanks again for keeping in touch!
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